Witch out of Water
by Algonquin
Summary: Harry Potter Meets Chick Lit: There are few women 18-35 in Harry Potter. What if there was an exhange teacher in OOTP?
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: The characters from Harry Potter belong to JK Rowling. The others are totally fictional and from my mind. This story takes place during OOTP  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"Mother, lots of teachers and witches go to England every year." Pause  
  
"Yes, I know there are rumors that Voldemort is back." Pause  
  
"Yes, I will be safe. I am sure Professor Sedgewick would not let me go there if I was in any sort of danger. They only send one teacher every 7 years and this is the only chance for me. Plus, I have never been to England. I will be safe, mother!" Pause  
  
"I know, I know, you are just being a mom. I appreciate it. Truly. And, yes, I will phone dad and I will send you an owl when I get there. I love you, too."  
  
Lexi placed the mirror down and sighed. She knew her mom was just worried, but she was 28 and could take care of herself. Besides, it was just England, not another dimension or something. And, Voldemort was not likely to have any interest in a visiting professor from America who was only a Halfling.  
  
She stared around her room willing herself to finish packing. The quicker she was done, the quicker she could watch TV. And, Sasha and Becky were likely to descend any minute for one last Imagitini and gossip session.  
  
Lexi stood up, stretched and knotted her blonde hair back. She strode with purpose to the closet and flung open the door. Right. Dress code list in hand, she whisked her wand over her clothes.  
  
"Dressunium Hogwarts!"  
  
A stack of clothes came flying out and landed with a thud at her feet. No denim, no Capri capes, no bikini. She knew that Hogwarts was far stricter than her own Islandwood, but this was ridiculous! Did they truly expect her to look like some Victorian witch all year?  
  
She sorted through the pile. At least the Capri pants had made the cut. Why Capri capes were off limits then seemed beyond her.  
  
She selected her khaki overalls and black knit shirt with her favorite cardigan for travel.  
  
"Jumper," she muttered, "must get used to calling it a jumper."  
  
The rest she slowly folded and stuffed into the trunk.  
  
Next came the shoes. "Ped Hogwarts" had only landed her keds, black boots and Doc Martens on the floor. That was not acceptable. She stuffed in 2 pairs of Francos and her spiky black heels just in case. Oh, and the fabulous cocktail dress she got at Good Witches last year. It was a wizard store. It really should be acceptable.  
  
Her eyes flickered over the rest of her room. She decided that her cosmetics and hair stuff could quickly make it into her backpack in the morning. She could deal with her cat's things then, as well. Her class books had gone on ahead. She added a couple of photo albums and a picture of her with Sasha and Becky playing tag with some guys on the coast last summer. Becky and Sasha waved and laughed while Travis blushed and turned away. Wizards.  
  
As she laid the picture in her trunk she heard a "Tsk, Tsk" from across the room. "Yes grandma, I was getting to you," she stated. "And, no, Travis and I are not together any longer," she added for good measure. Even her grandmother's photo did not approve of her still being single. She added that picture and one of her mother looking concerned. She also grabbed one of her Muggle father looking very uncomfortable in a wizard picture.  
  
Her investment banker father had never truly been comfortable with his daughter and ex-wife's magical status. He truly had beloved that her mother, Nora, was only being "hippie-ish" when she had told him she was a witch back in the late 60s. And, he had stuck with that belief for 7 years. Now he lived in Phoenix with his fitness trainer second wife and told his friends that his daughter taught at an exclusive private school off the Oregon coast. Well, at least it was somewhat true!  
  
Lexi added her old muggle teddy bear, a few novels and CDs to her trunk. She stuffed her CD player, 2 CDs and the most recent issue of "Pacific Northwest Witch" into her backpack. As it was very long flight, so she added her favorite Muggle book, "Bridget Jones' Diary" to the bag. She had read it 4 times already, but here she was heading off for her own adventure in England, so that should be a good enough excuse to re-read it.  
  
"That should do it", she thought, as she grabbed her wand and prepared to close the trunk. Several flourishes, spells and some re-packing later her trunk shrunk to the size of a small, rolling suitcase and she was ready to go.  
  
She started to close her backpack when her mirror started to flash red.  
  
"We are coming over!" cried Sasha even before Lexi turned the mirror over.  
  
"We have pizza and Verisum's Vodka!" added Becky. "Everything a good American witch needs for her last night at home!"  
  
The mirror went dim just as the doorbell rang. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
Sasha bounded through the door with her red curls bouncing.  
  
"The Imagitini Brigade is here!" she announced waving forth a quart of Verisum's Vodka and a bottle of Imagine-It Ambrosia.  
  
Becky followed with a steaming flat box. "And garlic and feta Pizza from Eugene's best!"  
  
Where Sasha was a small and bouncy redhead, Becky was quiet and stately with the dark look of her Anasazi mother.  
  
Lexi had barely closed the door before her friends were rattling around the kitchen whisking plates and martini glasses from shelves and mixing drinks with their wands.  
  
The three women had been friends since their first year at Islandwood. Sasha was from a long line of New England witches and had broken the family tradition by eschewing the New England School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Salem for Oregon's Islandwood Academy. She was exuberant and daring, yet somehow had chosen to become a Ministry Accountant. It seemed at odds with her adoration of anything dangerous, but she said it gave her balance and that there really was nothing as daring than playing with government money.  
  
Becky was far more quiet and reserved. She had grown up in the New Mexican Anasazi community, an ancient Native American Wizarding community. The Muggle world considered the disappearance on the Anasazi a great mystery, while the Wizarding community knew they had simply chosen to remove themselves from Muggles.  
  
Oddly enough, despite her heritage Becky, worked in a Muggle daycare in Eugene. She loved the children's ability to see her as the witch she was, while her Muggle co-workers remained clueless. Her job also helped the Ministry identify Muggle-born wizards and witches, of which there were plenty in Eugene.  
  
Lexi was the balance between her friends in many ways. She was more outgoing than Becky, but, like most of the world, had a little less exuberance than Sasha (who at the moment was re-arranging Lexi's cupboards while also mixing drinks).  
  
Lexi taught History of Magic and Muggle Studies at the Islandwood Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry, located of the Oregon coast. She had grown up in Washington and Oregon and loved the area and loved the school, but had jumped at the chance for the Dumbledore Fellowship to spend a year at England's venerable Hogwarts School. Now with one night to go, her excitement was tempered with nerves.  
  
"What if they don't understand me?"  
  
"They speak English don't they? Can I stack you cups up here? They look wonderful!" responded Sasha.  
  
"Please Sasha, nothing on the ceiling. Last time there was an earthquake I had to buy all new cups. And, I meant that what if I am not clear enough in explaining things? They may be far more advanced than Islandwood kids," sighed Lexi.  
  
"I think you are selling American wizarding a bit short," remarked Becky as she grabbed for the plates Sasha was wafting to top of the cupboards.  
  
"Hey, don't they have that Peters kid who was in the news when we were kids for like saving the world from his crib or something?" asked Sasha as she turned her attention back to mixing drinks.  
  
"Potter, Harry Potter. Yes, he had something to do with Voldemort and he is with my sophomores, or rather, my 'Fifth Years'," she corrected herself, "and that worries me as I have to prepare them to take something called O.W.L.S., which I guess is their equivalent of W.A.N.D.S."  
  
"Ewwww, Wizarding at Normal Degrees. I really hated standardized tests. Want to try the first batch," Sasha comments as shoved a drink at Lexi.  
  
"Hmmmm, watermelon! You do make the best Imagitinis, Sash. How did you get watermelon?" asked Lexi.  
  
"Imagine-It Ambrosia has new spells on the back for mixing. I think I will try the Key Lime next," Sasha answered.  
  
"Look," Becky said as she handed out the pizza, "you have been teaching for 5 years here without any complaints. You aced your W.A.N.D.S and you graduated with honors from Islandwood, the University of American Wizardry, and Evergreen College. You have won three teaching awards AND they don't give this fellowship to just any professor. You will do just fine and won't destroy any young minds. So, let's just go eat our pizza, drink our Imagitinis, and watch Charmed."  
  
"And, you just might meet a handsome Wizard there!" Sasha added.  
  
"Really not banking on that, but you are right. I'll be fine." Lexi sighed as she grabbed her drink and dinner. Now, if she could only get the nagging worries from her mind. 


End file.
